‘Black Hole,’ ‘Time Machine’ Actress Yvette Mimieux Passes at 80
Yvette Mimieux, an actress best known to sci-fi fans for her roles in the classics The Time Machine and The Black Hole, has died at the age of 80.
Mimieux died in her sleep sometime between Monday evening and Tuesday morning at her home in Bel Air, family rep Michelle Bega told The Hollywood Reporter.
The actress rose to prominence in the 1960s with performances in Where the Boys Are, Toys in the Attic and the sci-fi classic The Time Machine, where she played Weena, a woman in the distant future who meets George Wells (Rod Taylor).
In 1964, she made television history by becoming the first known actress to bare her navel on TV, in an episode of “Dr. Kildare.”
In the 1970s, Mimieux made numerous appearances in film and television, most notably in Disney’s first PG-rated film, The Black Hole, playing Dr. Kate McCrae. She was cast in the role after Jennifer O’Neill was injured in a car accident.
She retired from her acting career in the early 1990s, having earned three Golden Globe nominations along the way.
Mimieux rarely gave interviews, but did speak with Bobbie Wygant of KXAS, the NBC affiliate in Dallas, in 1979 while promoting The Black Hole.
Our condolences to Mimieux’s family and friends.